Church Scores Views of Social Action Group

Article taken from the Reno Evening Gazette, May 1, 1952

---

San Francisco, May 1 (AP) - The unofficial Methodist Federation for Social Action, charged by opponents with causing a breach in the church by following leftwing policies, will be asked durning the Methodist general conference to vacate offices in the Methodist building, New York.
The committee on the state of the church adopted a report yesterday linking this request with a demand that the federation drop the word "Methodist" from its title.
It was the opening gun in a campaign against the federation led by a group known as the "curcuit riders." They contend the federation, originally formed to promote the social creed of the church, now follows policies far beyond the church's most liberal views.
The committee report declares the church has been "embarrassed by certain pronouncements" of the unofficial federation. It contends that "confusion has arisen in the minds of the public regarding the right of the federation to speak for the Methodist church" and stresses that it has no connection with the church.
The federation's president, retired Bishop Francis McConnell of Lucasville, Ohio, told the committee the federation "is not a communist organization."
"Goodness knows," he said, "that the churches ought to have a radical organization occasionally.
"We have no quarrel with changing our name," he added. "We can change that all right. Only remember that we aren't the only unofficial organization of the Methodist church that makes statements that are criticized."
He did not elaborate.
The committee on the state fo the church also agreed to recommend establishing of a continuing committee "to the end that racial discrimination shall ultimately be eliminated from our fellowship." The committee added that it will drop this recommendation if the conference sets up a proprosed commission on social action.
On the conference agenda today was debate on the report of the commission to study the ministry. A majority report by the committee on the ministry has recommended discarding the pledge that ministeral candidates will not smoke.